Website Archive2005 / August 2017

Archives 06/07

The Academy 2006/07

The regional Academies are
helping to produce more and more quality players who can play at a high level

We
are fortunate in Cornwall to have excellent ties with the South-West England Rugby
Academy based at Truro.

The
Academy Manager Robin Cowling, former Gloucester, Leicester and England prop forward,
is also on the coaching staff assisting the Cornish Pirates.

In
the past numerous quality performers such as Graham Dawe, Martin Haag, Andy Reed,
Ian Sanders, Phil Vickery, Trevor Woodman, Olly Barkley, Tom Voyce etc., have
had to depart the Duchy to further their rugby careers - even our own 'Stack'
Stevens had to play at Harlequins for a brief spell in the early seventies to
keep his England place.

The
hope for the future is that the best of our developing talent can stay and play
for the Cornish Pirates in their home Duchy, something that will become an even
more attractive prospect should we reach the Premiership.

In
2005-06 we had four Academy players, namely Sam Betty, Owen Hambly, Adam Nicholls
and Simon Peters. Simon has since returned to play for his home club Redruth.

New
Academy recruits, who have joined us for 2006-07, are prop Gareth Tedstone, scrum-half/full-back
Lewis Webb, hooker Darren Dawidiuk, lock Scott Hobson, back-row forward Mike Rawlings,
centre Sam Parsons and fly-half Mike Provis, all of whom featured in the highly
successful Truro College squad that lifted the British Colleges Cup for the first
time with a 37-0 victory over Filton College (Bristol) at Castlecroft in 2006.